This Pantry Pottage became a traditional Thanksgiving Eve dinner many many years ago in my family. I think the original recipe was one that my mom had gotten off the local news station when I was still in high school. The idea behind the dish was to use up all the canned beans and vegatables from your pantry and toss them into a crock pot to cook up some fabulous and easy dish that would serve up a house of visitors.

Several years ago now, the original printed recipe that my mom had ended up disappearing among a chaotic move. I've since scowered the web to find it, though to no avail. I did, however, manage to find a similar version that I've tweaked to be closer to what my mom and I remember.

The holidays are a BUSY time. And my mom and I always love to make this Pantry Pottage up ahead of time to have completely ready to go on the night before turkey day or ‘Thanksgiving Eve’.

One thing I love to buy in bulk is dried 15 bean soup. I rather the dried beans than all those many cans, since it's cheaper and gives a larger variety of beans going into the soup. However, my mom would tell you that all those cans are half of the fun of this recipe. So to each, his own.